Customer ratings & reviews

Great Audio, Terrible Phone Performance

Posted 2 months ago

bzm3j81

Tech Insider Network

Top 1000 Contributor

Update: After connecting with Sony, they promptly sent me another pair and a shipping label for the first set. The second set has its own problems. Call quality has improved, but the other party hears static and the echo is still there. Also the right ear cup has a clicking noise as I move my head or even as I move my jaw. I can reproduce the clicking when compressing the padding with my palm. I'm hoping to get in touch with Sony again to get great quality headphones.
Out of the box, I wasn't terribly impressed by the sound of these headphones. Active Noise Cancellation was slightly less than I expected compared to my Bose QC35. Most background noise like my dishwasher from my kitchen down the hall was gone, but I could still hear my daughter's voice somewhat clearly while she was in the same room. (Even after toggling the ANC modes). So it seems to me Sony has cut more of the high and low frequencies than Bose has achieved. But Bose seems to cut more of the mid-range frequencies than Sony.
I played around with the touch controls which is a great idea, but I tend to like physical buttons. I like the confidence of physical buttons. Cupping the right earcup with your palm temporarily allows background sounds in, which is a much welcome feature over other manufacturers.
The audio game really changes once you manipulate the headphones through the Sony Connect app. The upgrade to firmware 2.0.0 took an unusually long time. The Sony Headphones Connect app automatically tunes to atmospheric pressure, and allows you to fiddle with an equalizer. There are some presets available but having this ability takes the audio quality of the Sony headphones far above the Bose QC35. You also have controls over the sound scape and can vary the ANC levels more so than the 3 presets available from the ANC button on the headphones.
Unfortunately, two aspects really cripple these headphones. While Sony does offer multi-point Bluetooth, you need to manually set one device to media and the second device to phone calls. It's not as easy as connecting both to Bluetooth and letting the headphones seamlessly hand off between two source devices. Bose wins on this point.
The other aspect, to which I'm left scratching my head, is phone performance. I've read many technology previews of the 'Mark 3' headphones and several don't even mention phone performance. Or that they're great without going into any detail whatsoever. While wearers of the 'Mark 3' headphones hear the other party clearly. The other party will hear you as muffled as trying to speak through a pillow. On top of that, the other party hears their voice echo back to them. This is quite disappointing.
I hoped this poor phone performance was limited to the stock firmware. But after upgrading to the latest firmware, this issue persists. I then spoke to a co-worker and they have the same experience. After doing some digging on Reddit, there are some others that complain of similar poor performance.
After some troubleshooting, my co-worker and I have determined that calls within apps such as Skype and WhatsApp are fine, but native calls on Android and iOS devices experience poor performance. However, we also found that while wired into a phone, the problem is solved. This poses another problem because several modern phones don't have a headphone jack.
I half hoped that I was experiencing a one-off performance, but after learning my co-worker having the same problem as well as a few 3-Star reviews on Amazon and reading experiences on Reddit, I'm led to the conclusion that this performance is more common that I would hope for a flagship product such as these Mark 3 headphones.
If you know you're never going to use these for phone calls, they're great, Sony Headphones Connect app gives you great control to make these sound very impressive. As for phone calls, these Mark 3 headphones are completely unusable until Sony can figure out how to fix this with a firmware update. If I could match up these headphones when I get a telemarketer call, I might have some fun with this.

No, I would not recommend this to a friend

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Brand response

SonyListens

1 month ago

Hi bzm3j81, we certainly empathize with your frustration and disappointment and we thank you for bringing us this attention. Please allow us to help you and turn this to a better experience. You can contact us at socialsupport@am.sony.com and include all information such as model/serial no, address and phone number. Thanks! ^Ron

DnlHnry512

Verified Purchase

Elite Plus Member

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

1

Would be 5 stars, but...

Unfortunately, these headphones were disappointing from the moment I opened the box.
They arrived with no battery life, so I charged them for an hour (the 5 hours per 10 minute charge didn't seem to deliver as advertised). When I finally turned them on, this loud screeching sound came out of the left ear speaker. The only way to stop it was to turn off the Noise Canceling effect. I tried turning the device off and on numerous times - even gave it three days to see if it would go away, but the screeching continued whenever Noise Canceling was turned on.
Since they fit comfortably, I figured I'd try another pair of the same model by exchanging them at my local Best Buy. However, they were sold out of both colored models and couldn't order another pair from a different location because they were sold out everywhere within 200+ miles. I tried looking elsewhere Online, but you can't even get them off Amazon at this time, and no one knows when Sony will ship them again.
After trying numerous other brands, I was convinced to settle for the Sony 1000 XM2 (same price as the XM3), but I intend to return them. They don't fit as comfortably and the ambient sound quality isn't even comparable to the XM3. Not sure why Best Buy charges the same price for these two models - doesn't seem right.
Will update my review when/if I get another pair.

No, I would not recommend this to a friend

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Brand response

SonyListens

1 month ago

Hi DnlHnry512, We regret to hear that this unit failed to meet your expectations. Sony takes into consideration all feedback to improve the performance and quality of our products and services, we're always looking to make Sony better.

We appreciate your time sharing this feedback.

Regards,Zac

Paladin

Elite Plus Member

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

1

Useless for mobile calls

Posted 1 month ago

Paladin

Elite Plus Member

Just received my black headphone (10/4/2018). Took a couple of calls on my Google Pixel 2XL and no one could make out what I was saying. This is really disappointing for a product at this price point AND I was in a dead-quite office room.
Hate to know how audio calls are handled if there is the slightest amount of background noise. Every caller I spoke with over Bluetooth on this headphone complained of hearing an echo, and not being able to make out my voice properly.
There are lots of complaints on this exact issue on the Sony support forum, with no response from Sony. Some have been able to resolve the issue by returning their headphones and ordering a replacement.
Seriously Sony? - It's 2018... handling Bluetooth phone calls was figured out by your competitors 10 years ago.
You have been peddling junk Experia-Z mobile phones plus non-existent support in the United States, and now this?
Stock price 20 years ago: $50 Stock price now: $50
20 years with ZERO shareholder value creation. No mystery why Sony can't make a dollar in the very markets it invented.

No, I would not recommend this to a friend

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Brand response

SonyListens

1 month ago

Hi Paladin,

We would like to know more about the issue and help you out. Kindly send us an email at socialsupport@am.sony.com including my name, your contact details and this feedback post in the email. Hope to hear from you.

Regards,Zac

Scott

Member

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

1

Stopped working after first charge

Posted 1 month ago

Scott

Member

They lasted about 10hr and then said “powering off”. I put it on the charger and even tried a few different USB outlets (I can’t believe 300 headphones don’t come with a charger). I spent the better part of an hour working to get them returned at a local Best Buy (they wanted to try different chargers too).
Avoid these headphones as they seem to break and don’t come with the charger needed.

No, I would not recommend this to a friend

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Brand response

SonyListens

1 month ago

Hi Scott, We regret to hear that the Headphones have to be repaired. Sony takes into consideration all feedback to improve the performance and quality of our products and services, we're always looking to make Sony better.

Bad quality

They don't work, quality 0/10. Don't reccomend at all. Bought off Sony site and they worked great!

No, I would not recommend this to a friend

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Brand response

SonyListens

1 week ago

Hi Alan, we appreciate bringing this to our attention and we are more than happy to take a look on this matter. Please reach us out at socialsupport@am.sony.com with your contact and product(model and serial number) so we can further assist you. Let us see what we can do to help you. Thanks! ^Ron